You can’t miss Christmas when you’re talking about English faith and culture! Despite the busy-ness of the past couple of months that has prevented the production of new episodes of the Canterbury Trails podcast, the boys are back in town, just in time for Christmas!

Join us as our hosts, C. Jay Engel and Jared Lovell, talk about why “The English do Christmas Best.” This fun and engaging episode tackles everything from Scrooge and Figgy Pudding to the economics of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, to the odd English tradition of Christmas Cracker Crowns.

Jared and C. Jay address the libertarian critique of Dickens’ classic work (and their unintentionally hilarious defense of pre-redemption Scrooge), and how “the Jacobin character of American style Capitalism” has affected the celebration of Christmas.

Our hosts ably defend Dickens, particularity, virtuous economics, and even the frivolities of cultural Christmas celebrations.

And they remind us that the frivolities are the point. That’s where the memories lie. You won’t remember the specific gifts you get each year, but you will remember the frivolous things, the patterns that are replicated from year to year. Those are the things that shape the soul.

And those are the things that Christmas can really bring to life.

So get ready to say, “Bah! Humbug!” to the free market absolutists (like Ben Shapiro) who think that Scrooge and Potter (from It’s a Wonderful Life) are the real heroes of their stories, and find a little room in your heart for Cratchit, Tiny Tim, and the people right in front of you this Christmas season.

And God bless us. Every one.